[Myrddin]

I'm resuming my volunteer work with the local police department Saturday night. We routinely check license plates at the local motels. A local license plate is a red flag. It usually signals a room rental used for drug parties or a transient meth lab. The department just outfitted us with 2 cars including light bars and radios. It's a mixed blessing. The cars have very useful resources, but also render you a labeled target. We're prohibited from carrying our CCW weapons while volunteering. The increased threat levels almost make me want to do patrols in my personal car to be less conspicuous.

I'm wondering how this volunteer relationship might change if we get hit in the next few months. Normally, we just act as extra eyes and ears. Additional training allows participation in taking reports of property crimes, non-injury accidents and directing traffic. Anything to free up the two sworn officers on duty at any given time. It's not unusual for me to have my wife running dispatch during her regular shift while I'm out in the COP patrol. We might pull the local ham operators in to help if things get bad. My wife and I both have ham licenses. She could double as emergency services net control on a ham frequency while dispatching police/fire/ambulance on the PD radio. We did that in San Diego at the Sheriff's Dept.

[Domestic Church]

"I'm wondering how this volunteer relationship might change if we get hit in the next few months."

You will be sworn in as a deputy in 5 seconds flat.

[little jeremiah]

Why on earth don't they let you carry while on this volunteer shift? This would seem like the very occasion when YOU shuld be packing heat!

[Labyrinthos]

A local license plate is a red flag. It usually signals a room rental used for drug parties or a transient meth lab.

Wrong: It usually signals a room rental by two people who want to be alone and intimate either because they don't want their spouses to know or they lack the kind of privacy they would like at their place of abode. Either way, its none of the LEOs business.

[Lucy Lake]

A local license plate is a red flag. It usually signals a room rental used for drug parties or a transient meth lab.

Once when the house was fumigated for termites, we took the cats and stayed in a local motel for a few days. Another time, we had out of town guests, so we stayed in the motel and turned the house over to the guests.

[Oorang]

We're prohibited from carrying our CCW weapons while volunteering

Why? That seems a little crazy.

[JustPiper]

After seeing the report today, yes terrorists need to eat, watch restaurants:

2 suspected al-Qaeda agents dropped in for meal, says Denny's manager in Avon

http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~53~2177173,00.html

PS I also did CB Patrol for several years until 16 years ago, the risks we took with Chicago gangs reminds me of the terrorist danger